Self-improving AI, Apple eyes AI acquisitions & more (August 1, 2025)

Happy Friday!

Meta’s AI models are starting to evolve on their own, Apple is finally going shopping for AI talent, and GitHub Copilot is now everywhere. Let’s dig in.

🧠 AI Gets Smarter, Stickier, and Scarier

🤖 Meta Detects First "Self-Improving AI"

Meta quietly reported the first signs of a model that can refine itself without human input. Zuckerberg called it “slow but undeniable” progress toward personal superintelligence. Meta is investing up to $72B in AI infra and pausing open-source frontier models, citing safety concerns.

🧠 Manus Launches Wide Research

Chinese AI startup Manus dropped Wide Research: a system of 100+ AI agents working in parallel on big tasks. It handled sneaker comparisons and poster design in minutes, but no benchmark yet on real-world ROI.

📈 Anthropic Overtakes OpenAI in Enterprise AI

A new market report shows Anthropic now leads enterprise LLM usage with 32%, ahead of OpenAI (25%) and Google (20%). Companies are sticking with platforms once adopted, leading to a “winner-take-most” dynamic.

🧑‍💻 Developers, Apple, and the AI Illusion

💸 Apple Says It’s "Very Open" to AI Acquisitions

After trailing in the AI race and a 15% stock dip, Apple is ready to spend. Tim Cook confirmed interest in M&A, and rumors say the company considered acquiring Perplexity.

📉 AI May Slow Down Expert Developers

A study by METR found that top coders using AI were 19% slower than without. They thought it made them 24% faster, but lost time correcting output and switching mental gears.

🧑‍💻 GitHub Copilot Hits 20M Users

GitHub’s AI coding assistant has reached 20 million total users, serving 90% of Fortune 100 companies. Enterprise adoption is up 75% quarter-over-quarter, showing just how sticky coding assistants have become.

🛠️ Tools of the Day

• Memories.ai – Visual memory model for summarizing long videos

• ToolSDK.ai – Build agentic AI apps with 1-line TypeScript SDK

• Riveo – A friendly, powerful FX video editor

✍️ Prompt of the Day

Day Planner Prompt:

⚡ Quick Hits

• OpenAI’s Stargate Norway center will run on hydropower and house 100K Nvidia GPUs

• FLUX.1 Krea model kills the “AI look” in images, no more waxy skin

• OpenAI revenue hits $12B, with 700M weekly active users

• Google Photos now remixes your still photos into animated videos

• A new prompt lets ChatGPT auto-create research + slide decks in Agent Mode

🧾 TLDR

Meta says its AI can self-improve, Anthropic now leads in enterprise usage, and Apple is finally investing in AI M&A. GitHub Copilot just hit 20M users and a new study suggests AI may actually slow down expert coders. Meanwhile, image generation is leveling up fast and enterprise LLM loyalty is getting sticky.

See you on the other side,
David